Four San Francisco Public Libraries Receive LEED certification from U.S. Green Building Council

In recognition of Earth Day 2012, San Francisco Public Library is proud to announce that four of its renovated branch libraries have now received Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification from the U.S. Green Building Council. Both the Park and Anza branch libraries were certified LEED Gold. The Presidio and Parkside branch libraries were certified LEED Silver.

Developed by the U.S. Green Building Council, LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is an internationally recognized green building certification system, providing third party verification that a building was designed and built using strategies aimed at improving performance across all the metrics that matter most: energy savings, water efficiency, CO₂ emissions reduction, improved indoor environmental quality, and stewardship of resources and sensitivity to their impacts.

All four of the branch libraries were renovated in the city’s Branch Library Improvement Program, the largest capital improvement program in San Francisco Public Library’s history. Each of the historic renovations of the buildings was undertaken in partnership with Department of Public Works and San Francisco Environment, with careful consideration for environmental concerns. This included adopting green building construction practices such as recycling and locally sourcing materials, improving energy and water efficiencies in each building, improving airflow and lighting, and including signage to highlight the environmental features inside each building as learning tools for the community. All four branches reopened in the past 18 months.

“Thanks to a remarkable collaboration among city agencies, each of these buildings was carefully renovated to not only protect their historic features but also to ensure we were preparing our buildings to be models of sustainability for the future,” said Department of Public Works Director Mohammed Nuru. “These green building efforts show that our libraries, which offer an important civic service and community space for our neighborhoods, are also leading the way as examples of the best green building practices in the nation.”

To celebrate achieving these prestigious LEED certifications, all four branch libraries will host open house events and tours, featuring entertainment and refreshments later this month or in June.